Evidence map›Paper›PMID 19517102›Full record

ArticleEuropean journal of clinical pharmacology2009

Interpretation of clinical guidelines for poisoned patients: positive and negative effects of standard phrases used in TOXBASE.

W S Waring, S H McDonald, A M Good, L D Gordon, D N Bateman

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Article in European journal of clinical pharmacology, 2009. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Not yet cited in PubMed.

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5 · Who and what money

Authors and funding

5 authors.

W S WaringNPIS Edinburgh, Scottish Poisons Information Bureau, The Royal Infirmary of Edinburgh, 51 Little France Crescent, Edinburgh EH16 4SA, UK.
S H McDonald
A M Good
L D Gordon
D N Bateman

Funding

No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.

6 · The paper itself

Abstract

introductionElectronic information sources are increasingly relied upon for clinical management advice. TOXBASE is a standardised online resource that offers clinical advice on the management of poisoned patients and is the first point of contact between clinicians and the National Poisons Information Service in the United Kingdom. Advice is delivered using a series of standard phrases. The present study examined how healthcare professionals interpret the phrases and studied their impact on clinical decision-making.

methodsA structured prospective written questionnaire was offered to healthcare staff in the Lothian region, and an electronic questionnaire issued to TOXBASE users across the United Kingdom. Participants were asked to respond to a variety of scenarios representing acutely poisoned patients. Clinical management advice was offered via TOXBASE using a variety of standard phrases, and participants were asked to express the likelihood that they would then administer gut decontamination treatment.

resultsThere were 70 respondents to written questionnaires, and 119 respondents to the electronic version. Phrases that included didactic instructions, for example 'give', 'contraindicated', 'do' and 'perform' were associated with strongly positive or strongly negative responses. In contrast, advice that consisted of open phrases such as 'consider', 'benefit uncertain', and 'few data' were associated with inconsistent responses.

conclusionDidactic words and phrases are associated with more consistent interpretation and response than open-ended words and phrases. The choice of words and phrases used in electronic systems can have an independent impact on clinical decision-making and require further consideration.

Indexed as

Choice BehaviorDatabases, FactualDecision Support Systems, ClinicalPoisoningPractice Guidelines as TopicTerminology as TopicAdultAttitude of Health PersonnelDecision MakingEvidence-Based MedicineFemaleHealth Care SurveysHealth Knowledge, Attitudes, PracticeHumansMaleMiddle Aged

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Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.